Sketchbook
by Ari 347
Summary: Because of an unfortunate accident, Lance's sketchbook winds up in Keith's hands. Except...the book is full of pictures of Keith and now Lance has to get it back!


**A/N:** Hi! I know, I know, I should be working on one of my many other in progress stories. But last night I found about six or seven prompts on Pinterest that I"m about 99% sure came from Tumblr and they just sounded perfect for Voltron! Soooo...here's the first one! As of now, I'm just going to write a one shot for each of the AU prompts I found, but if people are interested (or I get bitten by the writing bug...) I'll continue.

Like I said, I found these prompts on Pinterest with the the original poster's name cut off. So I apologize in advance - they're not mine at all!

Prompt: "I'm not stalking you, exactly, it's just that you accidentally put my notebook in your bag and I'm waiting for a good moment to steal it back before you see the doodles of you I did in it"

* * *

Lance tilted his head to the side, carefully observing the dark-haired boy in front of him. The history professor at the front of the room was droning on and on but didn't seem to notice that no one in the class was paying attention to him. As a consequence, everyone in the class was busy working on their own projects – mostly homework, although Lance thought he could see a few people here and there who were gaming. The object of his scrutiny, Keith Kogane, seemed to be researching something. His mullet (who had a mullet these days, anyway?!) fell into his eyes and every so often he'd angrily brush it out of the way. A notebook lay at one elbow and he occasionally scribbled something into it.

"Don't look so obvious, numbskull," Pidge hissed at Lance. "I think everyone in this room knows you have a crush on him."

"Hey!" Lance glared at his roommate. The girl was two years younger than the other students but made up for it in ferocity and brains. Mostly ferocity, though. "He just happens to be a great subject to use as practice for my art class. That mullet is really hard to draw."

"And yet you make it look perfect every time. I think you spend way too much time watching him." She pulled Lance's sketchbook to her and began to flip through the pages. Nearly every page had a drawing of Keith on it – sitting, smiling, eating, anything Lance could see or imagine. "One day he's going to get a restraining order with your name on it and then what will you do?"

He snatched the sketchbook back and stuffed it under the history and computer books at his elbow. "He's never going to see it, so there's no worry of that happening. I'm pretty sure he thinks I'm just a stupid pretty boy and I have no brains or talent."

"Which program is he in?" she asked, trying to subtly take the notebook back.

Lance slapped her hand. "Bad Pidgey. I think he's doing creative writing, but I'm not sure. Like I said, it's not like I talk to him that much."

"You didn't have to hit me." Giving him a dirty look, Pidge rubbed her hand and turned back to her laptop. "I think you should just go talk to him instead of stare at him during class and have _entire notebook_ full of drawings of him. Much less creepy and maybe you'd finally stop mooning over every pretty girl and boy you see. It'll give Hunk and I a break."

"You just have no concept of romance, do you?" Lance sighed. "Not today, though. I have that big calculus exam tomorrow and I can't flunk it. I need at least a B to keep my scholarship, and you know my parents aren't too happy that I'm doing an art program in the first place. I don't want to have to ask them to pay for college if I lose my scholarship over _calculus_."

Pidge shrugged. "I don't really care either way. It would just be more convenient for me. You do you."

"Yeah..." Lance rested his head on his hand and went back to staring at the dark-haired boy in front of him.

 **~VOLTRON~**

"You okay, buddy?" Hunk asked over lunch. The mechanical engineer peered over at Lance. "You haven't eaten anything, you've just been picking at your food."

Lance gave Hunk a half grin. The other man had always felt that eating trumped everything ever since they were much younger. "I'm good, Hunk. Don't worry about me."

"It's that guy in our class, Keith Kogane," Pidge explained around a mouthful of food. "Lance is still mooning over him."

"Pidge!" Lance shouted indignantly. Seeing everyone staring at them curiously, he lowered his voice, "Will you stop saying that? He just makes a good subject, I don't like him!"

"Uh-huh. Sure. Same way Hunk doesn't like Shay." She raised an eyebrow at Hunk, who'd begun choking on his food. "Oh come on, you're not pretending you don't have the biggest crush on her, are you?"

Hunk finally cleared his throat, his cheeks bright red. "I like Shay, but I don't like it when you have to announce it like that."

"You two are ridiculous." Shaking her head, Pidge dug into her macaroni and cheese. "So happy I don't have these problems."

"Oh, Pidge, one day you'll find your own android to fall in love with and then you'll see how it feels," Lance teased. He finally pushed his food away and grabbed his bag. "I don't have any classes scheduled for this afternoon, so I think I'll head to the gym and get in some time in the pool."

"Want me to pack up your food for you?" Hunk offered.

Lance gave him a bright grin. "That would be great. Thanks, Hunk! You're the best!"

"I try."

Jumping up from the cafeteria table, Lance headed out to the gym and swimming pool. Sometimes he missed the beaches at home. He used to spend hours out there, sometimes swimming, sometimes surfing, sometimes just spending time with family and friends. That was his one regret about this college: no beaches in sight. But at least there was the pool, so he wasn't completely cut off from the water.

He cut across the lawn to the gym building. Showing his student ID to the guard, he took the stairs two at a time and entered the locker room. He found an empty locker quickly and wasted no time shoving his bag in there, accidentally leaving his books on one of the benches. Within thirty seconds he was in the pool.

It took another five minutes before he realized that he wasn't alone in the pool. There was another person, a guy by the looks of things, who was doing laps across the pool. Lance couldn't quite tell who it was but decided to just stay out of the way. Once they got out of the water he could see if it was worth checking him out.

After forty-five minutes of swimming, Lance had had enough. Maybe this guy had endless stamina, but he didn't, and he had to save some stamina for studying. As soon as the thought crossed his mind, the other guy pulled himself out of the pool. Lance had to physically keep his jaw from dropping. That was Keith!

He scrambled up the ladder and followed Keith to the locker room. The other man saw him come in and simply nodded once. Turning to his locker, Lance felt his face heat up for some reason. Darn it, he didn't get embarrassed like this! He was the one who usually hit on other people.

Lance was so flustered, he didn't even realize he'd left his books on the bench in the locker room until he knocked into them, sending them crashing to the floor. If that wasn't bad enough, he bumped right into Keith, making the other guy drop his own books. "Ah, sorry!" he said quickly, dropping to his knees to help grab the books before they became soaked through. "I didn't see you - "

"Obviously." Keith knelt down beside him, gathering up his books, an annoyed expression on his face. "Just - watch where you're going next time."

"Yeah, sorry, sorry." Looking up, Lance's blue gaze met Keith's violet one and he felt his world spin. "I - can I take you to coffee as an apology?"

"It's fine," he answered shortly. "I'm just going to head home. See you around."

Face burning, Lance watched Keith stalk out of the locker room. There. He'd completely blown his chances with the guy now. There was no way Keith would go out with him after that. Bending down, Lance collected his books and swung his backpack over his shoulder. May as well go home and wallow in his misery.

 **~VOLTRON~**

"Hunk, what am I going to doooooo?" Lance whined, smashing his head into his calculus textbook. "He hates me! I have no chance with him!"

"He doesn't hate you. Just give it time to blow over and you can try to ask him out again." Coming into their living room, Hunk handed Lance a plate of fried Twinkies. "Here. Studying snacks. Even if I do think I can make food that tastes much better than that and aren't going to make you fat."

Lance gave him a brilliant smile. "Oh Hunk, my savior! You know these remind me of home and are my most important study food."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. But I still think I make better food," Hunk commented. "Why don't you just try drawing Keith? That always makes you feel better when you start pining for him."

"Great idea! I need a small break anyway." Reaching for the pile of books he'd been carrying around all day, Lance confidently lifted up his history book to reach his sketchbook...only to discover that his sketchbook was nowhere to be found. "Oh no. No no no no no!"

Pidge looked up from her laptop. "What's wrong? No inspiration for a drawing? I find that hard to believe."

Lance shot her an angry glare. "Quit making fun of me, _Katie_. My sketchbook isn't here and I don't know where – oh, crap."

"What?" Hunk poked his head out of their miniscule kitchen. "What happened?"

"I think – you know I said I bumped into Keith Kogane as I was leaving the locker room? And our books fell on the floor?" At Pidge and Hunk's nods, he continued, "I think he walked off with my sketchbook!"

"Okay, I think I see why that would be a crisis." Pidge closed her laptop, which Lance knew meant she was taking this seriously. "He'll think you're a creepy stalker."

"Are there other types of stalkers other than creepy?" Hunk mused. "I mean - "

"Not the point, Hunk!" Lance exclaimed. "What do I do now? He's going to know that I have the world's biggest crush on him!"

Pidge's eyes widened. "Wow. You just acknowledged it. Let me go look outside, I think pigs may be flying."

"Don't tease Lance, Pidge. He's going through a crisis right now." Coming into the living room proper, Hunk sat himself down beside Lance. "Are you really sure he has the sketchbook? Maybe you just left it in the locker room."

"No, I specifically remember checking to make sure that I didn't leave anything, just in case." Lance hid his face in his hands. "Oh Hunk, what am I going to do?!"

"Well, who said he's looked at it yet?" Pidge pointed out. The other two stared at her. "He may not have even looked at it. You don't know if he knows what's in there. We can mount a rescue mission for the sketchbook and get it back before he even sees it. He's in your calc class, right Lance?"

Lance nodded. "Yes..."

"Then he's probably studying just as much as you are. I doubt he's even looked at any of his books other than the textbook. Keith studies a lot." Pidge rolled her eyes as Lance and Hunk looked at her incredulously. "My idiot brother Matt is best friends with Takashi Shirogane, Keith's stepbrother. I've met him when Shiro gets my idiot brother out of trouble. You know, at least once to twice a week."

"So you've known him the whole time?!" Lance shouted.

Pidge shrugged. "I don't know him know him, I just see him sometimes. I'm not introducing you, if that's what you're getting at."

"But you do know his class schedule, right? So we can plan this rescue mission." Lance pulled out a blank notebook from his bag. "Now, when does he not keep a close watch on his bag?"

 **~VOLTRON~**

Lance pressed his back against the wall outside one of the college buildings. Across from him, lying on the grass, was Keith, a notebook in his hands. To Lance's relief it was one of those plain spiral notebook, not his sketchbook. It looked as though the other guy was completely engrossed in his book, so maybe if Lance was quiet -

"What are you lurking there for?" the guy in question called across the grass. Keith sat up, shooting Lance a poisonous glare. "Did you need something?"

"No, no, I don't need anything," Lance said quickly, his face turning red. "See you around!"

He felt Keith's piercing gaze burning a hole in his back but kept himself from turning around. Maybe Keith had looked through the notebook already and thought he was a stalker. He'd have to plan the next sketchbook rescue attempt a little more carefully...

 **~VOLTRON~**

As soon as the calculus midterm was over, Lance slunk downstairs to the cafeteria, feeling as though someone had pummeled him with a load of bricks. But he was pretty sure he'd done well enough on the test to keep his grade up, so that was something.

Hiking his bag higher up his shoulder, he went over to the counter to pick out something to eat, since he'd been too nervous between his sketchbook and the test to eat anything for breakfast. Nothing was as good as Hunk's food, but he found a danish that didn't look too bad. Grabbing a cup of coffee, he scanned the cafeteria for an empty table. That was when he realized that he wasn't the only one to come up with the idea of rewarding himself with food.

Keith sat at a table in the corner near the windows, engrossed in the notebook he'd been reading earlier that morning. A giant travel mug stood at his elbow and he periodically took a sip from it. Luckily for Lance, the table in front of him was free.

Not wasting even a second, in case someone else decided to take the table in front of Keith, Lance hurried across the cafeteria to snap up the table. The other guy didn't stir. Lance set his food on the table and eased into the seat, intent on not disturbing Keith. This was the perfect chance to get the sketchbook. He wasn't paying any attention to his bag.

Lance reached over, eye on the prize. His fingers stretched, just barely brushing the strap, when -

"You again?!"

He looked up to find Keith's angry violet gaze on him. "Um...hi?"

"Why are you trying to get into my bag?" Keith demanded.

"I'm not, sorry, dropped my..." Lance felt his ears begin burning. The he spotted a plain lead pencil lying on the floor beside the bag. "Pencil. Yeah, my pencil!"

Keith gave him a weird look. "You sure about that?"

"Yeah!" Grabbing the pencil, Lance straightened up and pulled his tablet from his bag. Maybe if he turned his attention away from Keith, the other man would forget all about him. As it was, he wished that the earth would just swallow him up. Now Keith knew he was a crazy person.

After he'd scarfed down his food as fast as he could without choking, Lance shoved his tablet back into his bag and jumped up. Somehow Keith had left without him noticing, and the table behind him now held a gaggle of pretty girls. But for once he wasn't interested in hitting on them in the least.

Maybe a quick dip in the pool would help clear his head.

 **~VOLTRON~**

This time Lance made sure his books were _in_ his locker before going to the pool. Not that he had a new embarrassing sketchbook, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

He dove into the pool, enjoying the feeling of the cool water against his skin. It was only after six or seven laps that he realized he wasn't alone. He nearly groaned alound when he realized who it was.

The one and only Keith Kogane.

Lance stayed under the water until he couldn't stand it anymore. _Of course_ the mullet-head had to be here! Lance was trying to get _away_ from him and now the guy was right in front of him. Praying that Keith didn't notice him, he pulled himself out of the pool and headed back towards the locker room. At least they seemed to be alone here. He could go find Keith's locker, get his sketchbook, and get out of there before the other guy noticed him. Then this would all be ov-

"Are you stalking me?!" came Keith's angry voice.

Spinning around so quickly he nearly fell down, Lance gave Keith a half-grin. "Well, I could say the same, I - "

"Just stop playing around. What do you need already?" Keith crossed his soaking arms across his chest, drawing Lance's attention to – no, he was not going to start staring at him, he had to get himself out of this mess. "I really do think that you're stalking me. You've been everywhere I am for the past two days."

"Um, well, it's not stalking exactly." Lance rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "See, you, um - "

Keith tapped his foot. "Spit it out."

"I'm not stalking you, exactly, it's just that you accidentally put my sketchbook in your bag and I'm waiting for a good moment to steal it back before you see the pictures of you I drew in it." The words tumbled out of Lance's mouth in a rush and as soon as he'd finished, he looked down at the tiled floor.

Whatever reaction he'd been expecting, it wasn't chuckling. "You're kidding, right?" Keith went over to his locker and pulled out his bag. "This is yours?"

"My sketchbook!" Jumping forward, Lance reached for his prized possession, pouting when Keith moved to keep it out of his reach. "Hey, give it back!"

"Not until I look through it." He opened the sketchbook and began to flip through it, much to Lance's dismay. "You're...you're really good."

"Um, thanks," Lance replied. "Can I have it back now?"

Keith held it out to him and Lance snatched it back. "How do you have so many pictures of me? I've never seen you before yesterday."

"What?!"

"We don't take any classes together?" he said, brow furrowing.

Lance's jaw dropped. "You...think we don't take any classes together?"

"Yeah? Like I said, I've never seen you before."

"We take Calculus I and Survey of Modern History II together!"

Now it was Keith's turn to blush. Lance found that he quite liked seeing the normally composed guy turn red. "Sorry, I don't - I don't always notice everyone in my classes. It's not just you, it - "

"Thank goodness!" Seeing Keith's confused expressions, Lance hurried to explain, "I thought you didn't like me and that was why you were always ignoring me. But now I know it's just because you don't see anyone."

"I notice some people..." Keith said awkwardly. At Lance's raised eyebrow, he sighed. "Fine. I don't notice anyone in my classes."

"Good. _Now_ will you go out for coffee with me?"

Keith rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'll go out with you. Only if you stop stalking me, though."

"Deal."


End file.
